Roaming the county getting ready for tonight ...

Jim Crawley said he was surprised by the number of fans that turned up for the game.

He was coaching in one of Rowan County's biggest rivalries.

And his team won.

No, Crawley wasn't at South Rowan, where he served as an assistant for years. And he wasn't at East Rowan, where he was head coach for the past two seasons.

Crawley was speaking of the China Grove-Corriher-Lipe Middle School doubleheader earlier this week.

China Grove actually won both the seventh and the eighth grade games, leaving Crawley satisfied and happy.

Crawley is doing just fine, thank you very much, as a P.E. teacher and coach at Don Bost's school on North Main Street in China Grove.

The question is, does Crawley still get the same satisfaction coaching at China Grove Middle as he did in high school?

"Football is still football," he said.

Except for the time frame.

"I get to spend more time with my family," Crawley said when asked of some of the benefits of going back to middle school. "I have a daughter in the sixth grade who I bring to school."

Crawley is familiar with the middle school system. He was a coach and teacher at Corriher-Lipe for seven years.

Instead of coaching current high school stars, he is helping mold the future — names like Bobby Richardson, Malachi Parker and Chris Barnhardt to name just three — who might one day be leading South Rowan to victory.

"They're like sponges," Crawley smiled. "They soak up everything."

Crawley's coaching days are now on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons, but appropriately, he is still a fixture on Friday night.

When South plays host to Statesville tonight, he'll be a spotter for his good buddy Jason Rollins, the South head coach.

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And why wouldn't Rollins want Crawley on his staff? When Crawley first took over at East, he brought Rollins with him.

Crawley likes what he sees at South, despite an 0-3 record. The future is bright in Raiderland.

"He's playing a lot of sophomores," Crawley said of Rollins.

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East Rowan is still the talk of the county, especially after beating West Iredell 48-27 last week.

The Mustangs weren't favored to win that one. And that's just the way quarterback Shawn Eagle wants it.

"Tell Common Sense not to pick us," Eagle laughed. "Common Sense picked us against North Rowan and we played like crap."

Coach Brian Hinson likes to be the underdog as well. He puts the article on the wall and reminds the players to look at it.

Hinson's college coach, David Bennett, used to do the same thing when the Post sports writers picked against Catawba.

"Where do you think I got it from?" smiled Hinson.

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Sorry, Shawn, but East Rowan is favored tonight against winless Carson.

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Is there anything happening at East right now that isn't good?

For instance, assistant Scott Schafer is not only enjoying football, he's enjoying life. His wife, Tracy, gave birth to William Alexander Schafer last Friday.

As a good coach's son, William was born in the morning. He knew better than to interfere with that night's win over West Iredell.

Hinson may already be recruiting the kid as a linebacker. He arrived weighing 10 pounds, 14 ounces.

Know what my wife says about giving birth to a

10-pound, 14-ounce child?

Ouch!

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If anyone should know what the East community is feeling, it's West Rowan coach Scott Young, and not just because he's a graduate of East.

West Rowan was not thought of as a football school when Young arrived 10 years ago, and the Falcons proved it by going 3-8 his first year. But once he started winning, it uplifted the community, the student body, the athletes — and the head coach. Young hasn't lost very much since.

Everybody feels good when the football team wins. And that's what is happening at East right now.

In fact, Young told Hinson his team was for real when they ran into each other at Catawba's game on Saturday.

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So, we might as well let the countdown begin.

In four weeks, East will visit West.

After tonight, East must face Mooresville, Lake Norman and South Rowan. West will face Statesville, West Iredell and Carson.

Any guesses on what their records might be when Oct. 12 gets here?

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When defending 3AA champion Eastern Randolph started 0-2, Salisbury coach Joe Pinyan knew not to get overconfident.

The Wildcats, coached by Burton Cates, bounced back to beat High Point Central and South Granville. They come to town tonight with a 2-2 mark.

"They lost to Sun Valley and Dudley, two very good teams," Pinyan said. "A Burton Cates football team is tough."

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And finally ...

There will be plenty of good listening on the ol' AM dial tonight:

* WSAT 1280, with the ebullient Jeff Vail and the even more ebullient Glenn Taylor behind the mike, will broadcast the Salisbury-Eastern Randolph game.

* WSTP 1490 has a biggie as Northwest Cabarrus visits West Rowan. Veteran Howard Platt will join sidekick Wilson Cherry, who, I think, is related to practically every player in the county.

* WRNA 1140, led by the velvet-voiced Carl Ford and straight-shooter Bob Parker, will carry South Rowan's home game against Statesville.

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Contact Ronnie Gallagher at 704-797-4287 or rgallagher@salisburypost.com.